CUSTOMER NEEDS, BUSINESS IMPACTS

A massive increase in Web threats - and the countless methods of propagating these threats - has been a catalyst for the radical growth of new security functions, mostly delivered on separate boxes. The result? Security "appliance sprawl" and increased operations cost. The solution? Next Generation Content (NGCG). NGCG represents the convergence of the latest content protection technologies. The Solution blends both sophisticated URL filtering with malware scanning, P2P and bot-blocking, end-node remediation, proxy cache, and, as secure Web traffic grows, decryption and encryption.

Yet no vendor has best-of-breed offerings in all of these functions. This alone limits the potential for effective convergence. Furthermore, the scaling needs of each technology are different and generate multi-dimensional requirements for the underlying hardware platform, specifically:

• Rapid feature growth; for example, the addition of VA and NBAD capabilities
• Organic, M&A, and contractor organizational growth
• Traffic growth and strict latency limits even on deep packet inspection
• Preservation of equal product quality in both the FW and IPS

Crossbeam security services platforms deliver the performance, high availability and flexibility to incorporate the full spectrum of content security technologies from different vendors seamlessly. In addition, the Crossbeam solution lets customers start by consolidating a single function and then adding in others in a way that makes sense. Typically, this produces significant financial benefits, even with just one application.

UNDERLYING ISSUES OF NEXT GENERATION CONTENT GATEWAY DEPLOYMENTS

With enterprises deploying solutions to combat the growing number of Web-based attacks, a number of underlying operational issues need to be taken into consideration. Just analyzing a single lookup of a Web site demonstrates a complex sequence including proxy chaining, inline and tap-based applications, making sure cache hits occur before other functions are executed, and load balancing application traffic to the right security mitigation functions. This requires both network throughput scaling as well as highly scalable compute and storage resources.

SOLUTION ARCHITECTURE

The flexibility of the Crossbeam platform is based on unique technology that is able to apply multiple services from separate leading vendors - in parallel or in sequence - based on the corporate security policy. In the case of the NGCG, best practices dictate a sequence that incorporates the functions mentioned above. The Crossbeam NPM, acting as a policy director, ensures that the full sequence occurs at wire speed with extremely low latency and in the right order. In order to ensure best-of-breed functionality at equal levels, Crossbeam selected Trend Micro and Websense as the core content security engines.

Websense, the acknowledged leader in the URL filtering world, offers unmatched reporting for compliance purposes that is particularly beneficial to large enterprises.  In addition, Websense now includes a full featured Web Proxy and Cache. Instead of just relying on third party integrations or pass-by technology, Websense can now control Web traffic and data directly. This is in addition to the broader application of P2P Network Agent enforcement.

Trend Micro InterScan Web Security Suite (IWSS) 3.0 deployed on the Crossbeam X-Series security switches provides a complete NGCG, offering comprehensive Web-threat protection and the performance and reliability required by large enterprises. IWSS provides anti-virus, anti-malware, and anti-spyware, with optional Applet/Active-X Security (AAXS). Coupled with the wire speed policy direction of the NPM in the X-Series, all required content security functions can be implemented in a scalable fashion.

CORE CAPABILITIES: SOLVING OPERATIONAL ISSUES

The Crossbeam consolidated NGCG provides multi-layer enterprise threat protection. This solution controls the connection point between the Internet and the enterprise's internal network and also between security domains within the enterprise. Its policies provide detection, prevention, and remediation of Web-based attacks without end user intervention. This solution also allows multi-application consolidation into a single security services platform. Websense Security Suite and Trend Micro IWSS 3.0 can run simultaneously on multiple application processor modules, and can also run side by side with other best-of-breed security applications, helping to reduce costs by sharing a common infrastructure. The solution is fully certified by Crossbeam's iBeam program.